Thrust areas in Breeder Seed Production
- Production of adequate quantities of breeder seed as per national requirement.
- Quality maintenance of nucleus and breeder seeds by employing dynamic maintenance breeding and rapid genetic purity testing tools.
- Identification of suitable provenance for offseason seed production to compensate the effects of changing climate.
- Networking for development of national database of DNA profiles for varietal identification.
- Effectively ensure and monitor generation system of seed multiplication at national level through bar code and QR coding module.
- Harnessing the potential of rice fallows for seed production of oilseed and pulses.
- Identification of suitable seed provenance for institution of ‘National Seed Reserves’, with special emphasis on soybean in states of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
Thrust areas in Seed Technology Research
- Seed production and certification
- Identification of suitable alternative areas/ provenances for seed production in a bid to counter the effects of climate change.
- Development and optimization of climate-resilient seed production technology.
- Harmonization of seed standards in tune with the needs of global seed certification standards.
- Optimization of micro-nutrients and growth regulators in relation to reproductive behavior to augment the seed yield.
- Developing alternative methods (self-incompatibility & apomixes systems) for hybrid seed production in a bid to exploit heterosis.
- Development of seed production packages and seed certification standards for underutilized crops.
- To explore upon new planting methodologies/ geometries in a bid to optimize seed rate in tune to the realization of higher seed yields (revisiting SMRs).
- Seed physiology, testing, and storage
- Validation/up-gradation of field and seed standards/protocols, isolation distance, sample size, physical purity and ODV’s in varied crops.
- Standardization of seed testing procedures in field, vegetable, medicinal and green manure crops.
- Standardization of DNA finger printing/molecular markers tools to supplement GOT.
- Use of second and third generation tools for seed quality enhancement.
- Identification of seed vigour traits as a sensitive measure of seed quality in major crops.
- Identification of suitable seed treatments / materials / methods for safe storage of seed.
- Seed pathology
- Identification of disease free zones for quality seed production.
- Development of rapid and reliable techniques for detection, identification and screening of seed materials for different seed borne diseases.
- Development of integrated strategies for management of seed borne diseases.
- Development of field and seed standards for seed borne diseases and strengthening of work on biological control of seed borne diseases.
- Revisiting of field and seed standards for seed-borne diseases.
- Monitoring, detection, and management of new seed borne diseases.
- Seed entomology
- Pest risk analysis for efficient management of insect pests under seed storage.
- Evaluation of new insecticide molecules for management of storage insects.
- Development of integrated management strategies for management of storage insects.
- Management of insect pollinators for increasing pollination efficiency and seed set.
- Determining the efficacy of novel packaging material with new chemistry for management of storage insects.
- Seed processing
- Standardization of grading sieve sizes (top & bottom sieves) and processing methodologies for new crop varieties/ parental lines.
- Bringing mechanization in seed production to march towards precision farming.